“Time is a far more relative concept than I thought.”

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An ethically challenged insurance lawyer finds himself on a bad hallucinogenic trip that makes him question the nature of his reality, in first-time Director Gille Klabin's psychedelic sci-fi thriller, The Wave.

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Frank (Justin Long, Galaxy Quest, New Girl) is a lawyer for an insurance company who finds an error in a life insurance claim form for a deceased firefighter that will allow his firm to deny the claim outright. The company will save $4 million, which would put Frank on the fast-track for a promotion. And he seems untroubled by any hardship this denial of claim will cause the fireman's widow and children. His co-worker Jeff (Donald Faison, Scrubs, Ray Donovan) talks him into a night on the town to celebrate ("It's Tuesday, Booze Day!"). And that's where things start to go horribly wrong for Frank.

The guys pick up BFFs Natalie (Katia Winter, Sleepy Hollow) and Theresa (Sheila Vand, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night) in a dive bar, and the four end up at an after-hours party. That's where Frank and Theresa meet the decidedly strange Aeolus (Tommy Flanagan, Sons of Anarchy), who offers them both a nameless experimental hallucinogenic drug. Against his better judgment, Frank takes it. "It's supposed to hit you like a wave," Aeolus assures him—and suddenly Frank finds himself alone in the house, hours later, surrounded by detritus from the party with no wallet.

Convinced he was drugged and robbed, Frank spends the rest of the film trying to piece together what happened to him that night—a task made more difficult by his continued hallucinations, long after any drug he'd taken should have worn off. The side-effects include lots of unpredictable time jumps. In desperation, Frank turns to Jeff for help, and the two join up with Natalie to find Theresa, who is missing. And then things start to get really crazy.

Jeff (Donald Faison) persuades Frank (Justin Long) to go out on the town to celebrate a big business win.

Echo Wolf Productions

Frank meets Aeolus (Tommy Flanagan) at a party, who offers him an experimental drug.

There's an overall theme of karmic justice, of restoring balance to the universe by sending Frank on this mind-bending journey. "You're almost there," Aeolus assures him toward the end of the film. "The universe is trying to tell you something." And the fractured timeline mirrors the fracturing of Frank's carefully structured but unsatisfying life before that fateful party, leading to a kind of personal enlightenment.

The film debuted last year at Fantastic Fest to mostly positive reviews. There are elements of After Hours (1985) and Jacob's Ladder (the 1990 original, not last year's remake) to this strange, engaging film, but Klabin succeeds in putting his own stylistic stamp on it. Having the audience experience what Frank is experiencing, skipping around in a fractured timeline trying to uncover the truth about what happened to him, is part of what makes this film so interesting and engaging. But it also makes the plot a bit incoherent and hard to follow, particularly in the second act.

Fortunately, the pieces all start to come together in the third act, although I wouldn't say it all becomes crystal clear. It's never quite clear what happened to Theresa, for instance, or whether Justin's memory of Theresa is even the same woman. (She certainly features prominently in his bizarre visions, set in a jewel-toned alternate dimension.) That said, I very much like the film's insistence that "you can't change what's already happened." Whatever Frank uncovers in his surreal journey, there's no possibility of a do-over. But he has learned one important lesson: "Time is a far more relative concept than I thought."

The themes in the trailer of the universe having an agenda / wanting to show you something, and a drug being the gateway to that, reminds me of the Soy Sauce in John Dies at the End, which was also a fun trippy adventure.

Ah, well, thanks for that. I don't generally watch trailers, so didn't look at it. I've found they don't usually reflect what a movie is all about. And, typically, reviews include release times/places, so I was mildly surprised to not see that here.

Sadly, It's not on any of the services I currently subscribe to. But it sounds weird enough to have a look at.

It must be difficult. One of the first things he ever did was help save the world and yet he's most known as an anthropomorphised computing device.

John Hodgman says that for a long while, that was the case for him as well (although I don't know if he helped save the world or not).

IMDb usually lists a person's most pivotal role (Ex: Tom Hanks = producer of Cast Away; Harry Anderson = actor on Night Court). John Hodgman = actor in Coraline, and Justin Long = actor in Live Free or Die Hard. I don't think anyone has a commercial listed.

It's a slight variation on a Neil deGrasse Tyson quote and his line was clearly inspired by earlier quotes, such as this one from Sagan

Then science came along and taught us that we are not the measure of all things, that there are wonders unimagined, that the Universe is not obliged to conform to what we consider comfortable or plausible.

Ah, another one I got to see at our film festival! I actually really enjoyed this one. Trippy, to be sure. Perhaps not entirely the most original, either, but it was definitely a lot of fun. I'd definitely give it another watch.

IMDb usually lists a person's most pivotal role (Ex: Tom Hanks = producer of Cast Away; Harry Anderson = actor on Night Court). John Hodgman = actor in Coraline, and Justin Long = actor in Live Free or Die Hard. I don't think anyone has a commercial listed.

Those are... none of those examples are the ”most pivotal roles” that I would have gone for. Perhaps I need more time in the cinema!

"There is no obligation for the universe to make sense to you."-- Sigma (Overwatch)

Gems on that subject from Babylon 5 :

"The universe is driven by the complex interaction between three ingredients: matter, energy, and enlightened self-interest." ~ G'Kar, Survivors

"And how are things at the royal court?""You know; collusion, politicking, scheming, innuendo, gossip. The same old thing." ~ Londo and Vir, Sic Transit Vir

"I thought the purpose of filing these reports was to provide accurate intelligence.""Vir, intelligence has nothing to do with politics." ~ Vir and Londo, Point of No Return

"Rules of combat older than contact with other races. Did not mention aliens. Rules change caught up in committee. Not come through yet." ~ Former Green Drazi Leader, The Geometry of Shadows

"The Vorlons are like your parents, I suppose. They want you to play nice, clean your room, do it by the rules. I guess you could call them Lords of Order.""The others [The Shadows], the ones who live here, believe that strength only comes from conflict. They want to release our potential, not bottle it up."[Shadow strategy:] "It's really simple. You bring two sides together. They fight. A lot of them die, but those who survive are stronger, smarter, and better." ~ Justin and Anna Sheridan, Z'ha'dum

"So much has been lost, so much forgotten. So much pain, so much blood. And for what, I wonder. The past tempts us, the present confuses us, and the future frightens us. And our lives slip away, moment by moment, lost in that vast, terrible, in-between. But there is still time to seize that one last fragile moment. To choose something better; to make a difference, as you say. And I intend to do just that." ~ Centauri Emperor, The Coming of Shadows

Love seeing the After Hours shout-out. Talk about time compression in a movie... It's not even a long movie (1h 38m) but you'd swear you've experienced every moment of the protagonist's 10+ hour journey.

It's a slight variation on a Neil deGrasse Tyson quote and his line was clearly inspired by earlier quotes, such as this one from Sagan

Then science came along and taught us that we are not the measure of all things, that there are wonders unimagined, that the Universe is not obliged to conform to what we consider comfortable or plausible.

A man said to the universe:“Sir, I exist!”“However,” replied the universe,“The fact has not created in meA sense of obligation.”- Stephen Crane c.1899

It must be difficult. One of the first things he ever did was help save the world and yet he's most known as an anthropomorphised computing device.

John Hodgman says that for a long while, that was the case for him as well (although I don't know if he helped save the world or not).

IMDb usually lists a person's most pivotal role (Ex: Tom Hanks = producer of Cast Away; Harry Anderson = actor on Night Court). John Hodgman = actor in Coraline, and Justin Long = actor in Live Free or Die Hard. I don't think anyone has a commercial listed.

I've long thought he's one of the more underrated actors out there. But maybe that's just my irrational love of 'Dodgeball' bleeding through.

Oh my goodness...we rented this last week and it was terrible. Mind you, this is just one man's opinion, and I'm no scholar nor am I a critic, but this really was an awful movie. It's only saving grace was that it was fairly short.

It was faux deep and completely nonsensical. Wacky just for the sake of being wacky is hollow, and this is that.

From the trailers and review, "The Wave" looks a bit preachy. For those who like a harder and more horrific edge to a character's drug-induced psychosis, check out "Bliss". That thing is a cinematic masterpiece of tone and imagery; truly incredible. I believe the director shot it on 16 mm.

Not saying it’s a great movie but I think you are more likely to find TheWave entertaining if you’ve actually taken a psychedelic at some point in your life.

Technically well executed; well shot and acted, IMO. The way the story evolved kept me engaged and amused but it completely fell apart in the last 5-10 minutes. It’s almost like they had no idea how to end it and thought, ‘of course, Jesus!’. Bunch of religious nonsense. Wasted potential. Not bad for what it was.